


Ring That Bell

by Tabithian



Series: Through the Looking Glass [5]
Category: Batman (Comics), DCU, DCU (Comics)
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-26
Updated: 2015-08-26
Packaged: 2018-04-17 08:14:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,557
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4659252
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tabithian/pseuds/Tabithian
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jason thinks it's kind of messed up that out of all the kids involved in the damn Hallway Incident, the only ones to land detention were him and New Kid.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Ring That Bell

**Author's Note:**

> It's turning out to be one of those weeks, and there's still [this post](http://tabithian.tumblr.com/post/126696742224/aus), so. 
> 
> Yes.
> 
> Super duper self-indulgent AU fic. *hands*

Jason thinks it's kind of messed up that out of all the kids involved in the damn Hallway Incident, the only ones to land detention were him and New Kid.

Because really, Jason was only there to gawk, and New Kid. Hell, New Kid is New Kid. Poor schmuck was just trying to get to his class and got caught up in the chaos.

Whatever, like the teachers care. 

They'd looked right past the actual troublemakers, kids of rich and important figures in Gotham and landed on the perfect scapegoats in their eyes.

Jason and New Kid who stuck to himself and was the kind of weird that meant he got the bad kind of attention around school.

Jason's got his chair up on its back legs, feet kicked up on the table in front of him and New Kid - 

New Kid's slumped down in his desk, headphones on and staring blankly out the window.

Old Mrs. Tunstall is angrily grading homework, vindictive little swipes and jabs of that damned red pen of hers, occasional smirks and low swearing.

And Jason, okay.

Jason's supposed to be the resident bad boy/charity case at this stupid school because who even knows.

And, sure. 

Jason wears a leather jacket, it's a hand-me-down, broken in just right, the right kind of comforting when he walks through this stupid school's hallways. Hears the snot-nosed brats whispering behind their hands about that Todd boy, so strange. (And that hair? It can't be natural.)

Jason wears leather and sometimes his sleeves pull up, shows the scars. (He gets whispers for those too, hears the rumors about how he got them. Each one wilder and more improbable than the last and still nowhere close to the truth.)

Jason lets his chair drop down on all four feet, grins all sunny and sweet at Tunstall when she looks over her bifocals at him. 

Holds the obnoxiously sweet smile until she snorts and goes back to breaking the spirit of poor unsuspecting teenagers via overly harsh grading.

He rips a piece of notebook paper out, sets it down all nice and neat. Takes out a pen, carefully dismantles it and puts the parts he's not going to need aside for later. Then, staring at the back of New Kid's head, tears the notebook paper into little pieces, rolls them up nice and good.

Freezes, when the kid glances behind him, suspicious look on his face. Eyes flicking to Jason's table and up to Jason, and frowns.

Jason raises a hand and waves his fingers at New Kid. 

The kid sighs, readjusts his headphones and slouches down even further before tugging the hood of his hoodie up.

Jason grins, goes back to creating weapons of mass destruction.

When he's finished, Jason doesn't target New Kid specifically, but he also doesn't _not_ target him.

Pretty much, Jason aims a few spitballs at him until the kid lets out this annoyed huff and scoots his desk out of the immediate line of fire. 

Jason shrugs, takes aim and lands one on the kid's shoulder. Another hits the back of his chair with a soft little splat, and - 

“Mr. Todd.”

Shit.

Tunstall's scowling at him, red pen of academic death pointed at his face. “You've just earned yourself another detention, you...you _hooligan_.” 

Jason stares.

He's been called a lot of things in his life, none of them pretty, but this.

New Kid snorts, tries to muffle his laughter into the sleeve of his hoodie but it's pretty much a lost cause.

Tunstall huffs, injured dignity of a cranky old woman left dealing with a couple of ungrateful brats when she probably should have been home hours ago.

“And one for you as well, Mr. Drake.”

New Kid groans, drops his forehead on his desk.

********

“Thanks a lot,” New Kid hisses as he pushes past Jason in the hallway later. “That was exactly what I needed right now.”

Jason blinks, watches the kid storm off down the empty hallway and because Jason is an ass - 

“Hey, anytime, you know? I'm always glad to help!”

New Kid stops in his tracks, spins around to glare at Jason.

And Jason, he's such a little shit, just rocks on his heels and grins.

New Kid lets out an aggravated sound, throws his hands up and walks around the corner toward the front doors of the school.

Jason should feel bad, he knows, because he knows what being the new kid's like.

More importantly, he knows what being the new kid at this school is like.

“Fuck.”

He runs after New Kid, past the main office and disapproving look from one of the janitors out the front doors, but the little shit is fast. Jason can't see a sign of him anywhere, and the front grounds are pretty fucking huge, carefully trimmed lawn and hedges.

No sign of New Kid, but there's a bike pulled up to the curb, Dick watching him with an easy smile and tossing his spare helmet in his hands.

“Detention again, Jay? Really?”

Jason scowls, honestly a little relieved that Dick's the one picking him up right now because – God. He's just not ready to face Bruce's judgey face, or worse, _Alfred's_.

“I was framed, okay?” Jason says, doesn't stomp up to Dick no matter what the jerk's face says he does. “The legal system here is for shit.”

Dick laughs, throws the helmet to Jason who pulls it on and gets on behind Dick, maybe squeezes a little harder than necessary.

“ _Oof_ , geeze, Jay. Ease up a little, I need to breathe, okay?” 

Jason snorts, drops his head against Dick's back as he starts the bike up.

“Please. With the way you drive I should be holding on tighter.”

********

Jason doesn't know how the hell Mr. Leonard came up with the assignments for the Model UN, but he laughs until he cries when he gets Ethiopia.

He can feel eyes on him, knows he's making a spectacle of himself, but holy God, what are the odds?

“Mr. Todd? Jason?”

Jason looks up to see Mr. Leonard looking down at him, worried, uneasy, and Jason.

He waves a hand, tries to say it's nothing, he's _fine_ , but the words just won't come and he can't stop _laughing_.

“I think there's a problem with my assignment,” New Kid says, voice raised to be heard over Jason's laughter.

Jason's eyes dart over to him, sees the bored look on New Kid's face as he holds up the card Mr. Leonard had handed to him.

Mr. Leonard looks at Jason, but Jason's staring at New Kid who couldn't look more like all the other rich, entitled little shits going to this school if he tried, which is new.

“Mr. Drake, I'm afraid your problem is going to have to wait - “

“No,” Jason gets out, flaps a hand at his teacher. “I'm good, sorry, just. Thought of something funny.”

It really fucking isn't, but it's not like he can just tell everyone why the hell he's laughing, now can he?

Mr. Leonard eyes him, Jason still wheezing and gasping, little bursts of laughter on the edge of hysteria bubbling out of him occasionally.

“ _Mr. Leonard_.”

Jason is staring at New Kid, along the half the class because New Kid is quiet, polite, _considerate_.

He's never talked to the faculty or staff like that.

“What could possibly be the matter, Mr. Drake?”

New Kid holds his card up and turns it around so they can read it.

The look on New Kid's face is wholly unimpressed and his voice is flat when he says, “You gave me Texas.”

Jason starts laughing for a completely different reason.

********

Dick's the one who picks him up again, smile a little strained as he looks at Jason.

“Hey, kiddo. Not looking so hot.”

Jason looks at him, feels tired and drained and so damn _weak_ because it's been over a year, shit like that shouldn't get to him like this. (Bullshit, he knows, but that doesn't stop him feeling like that anyway.)

Dick sighs, ruffles Jason's hair and pulls him against him as they walk to the parking lot. Jason closes his eyes when they get outside, leans heavily against Dick for a moment, feels him gently squeeze the back of his neck.

“Hey.”

They both turn at the hesitant sound, see New Kid standing behind them, awkward little smile on his face. 

“You forgot your stuff,” he says, holds up Jason's backpack and the jacket Dick gave to him.

Shit, how did Jason fucking forget that? How did _Dick_?

New Kid tilts his head, worried little frown on his face, eyes ticking up to Dick for a moment before he moves a little closer to Jason. “Are you going to be okay?”

Jason laughs, or he tries to, but all that comes out is a little burst of air, pained little noise, and he makes a tired little _who fucking knows_ gesture with his hands, because.

He doesn't fucking know.

New Kid sighs, kind of sad, and nods. He gives Dick a smile and hands him Jason's shit and heads back into the school.

“Friend of yours?” Dick asks.

Jason looks up at him, and has no idea how to answer that.

********

New Kid acts like nothing happened, like Jason didn't flip out for no reason a few days ago. (Like he didn't stay home from school for a couple of days, everyone worrying over him and Jason being helpless to explain himself.)

Just drops into a seat next to Jason and slides over a couple of worksheet packets, page of notes in neat handwriting.

“I got your homework for you, and you can copy my notes,” he says, nervous edge to his smile. “I just thought. You know...”

New Kid trails off with a little shrug, and Jason.

“Thanks.”

New Kid's smile widens a little, loses its uncertainty. 

Actually, it's headed a little towards a smirk - 

“Hey, anytime, you know? I'm always glad to help.”

Jason narrows his eyes at New Kid, and oh, yeah, that's definitely a smirk.

“You're a little shit, aren't you?”

New Kid blinks at him, all wide eyes and total bullshit and it's _fantastic_.

********

“You seem happy,” Dick says, throws a punch at Jason's face. “What happened?”

Jason ducks, goes for Dick's knees.

“I don't know what you're talking about.”

Dick pulls back, eyes narrowing, and Jason.

Jason skips back a few steps, drops into a crouch because when Dick gets that look on his face it usually means trouble for Jason. (And new bruises because Dick is a tricky bastard and Jason's still not good enough to avoid all the shit he throws at him.)

“Come on, Jason, Jay, we're brothers, aren't we? We're supposed to be able to tell one another everything.”

Jason scoffs, flexes his fingers.

Shoves that reflexive surge of anger and bitterness down deep where it belongs, because Dick.

He's trying. 

Making up for the past, and there are fumbles here and there, both of them tripping over this whatever it is they're doing, trying to be a family, Jason thinks.

“Nice try, Dickie.”'

The friendly, affable smile on Dick's face melts away to annoyed determination and Jason braces himself for it when Dick leaps at him.

Slams into Jason, both of them hitting the mats hard enough to hurt, and then Dick's got Jason in a headlock, face close to Jason's ear.

Growls out “Spill!” in a damn good Batman voice.

Jason laughs, jabs his elbow back tries to get free but Dick is just so damn determined, and really kind of annoying.

“I made a friend, okay?” Jason says. “Like, an honest to God friend. You'd like him. He's a little shit, just like you.”

Dick squawks in protest and grinds his knuckles into the top of Jason's head until he cries uncle, laughing and swearing.

********

“You have a first name?”

New Kid blinks at Jason, lowers his book. “I'm sorry?”

Jason sighs, nudges New Kid's foot with his own. “I asked if you had a first name.”

New Kid looks at Jason like he's kind of stupid, but hey, that's okay, New Kid likes that about him.

“Tim,” New Kid says, mouth pulling up into a shy little smile. “My name's Tim.”

Jason grins, holds his hand out and says, “Nice to meet you, Tim. My name's Jason.”

Tim rolls his eyes, but he goes with it, shakes Jason's hand.

“So nice to finally meet you, Jason. I've heard a lot about you.”

A beat, Tim smirking at him as he says, “All terrible, of course.”

And there, there's that little shit who gives Jason grief.

( _Fantastic._ )

********

Jason lost a little over a year, after Ethiopia.

Bruce getting there just in time to keep Jason from getting himself killed, but not so fast they walked away unscathed.

There was a lot of time spent in the hospital, rehabilitation and just.

Jason being a fucking mess, mentally and physically and so not ready to put on the Robin suit and go back out there to punch the shit out of criminals it wasn't even funny.

He wasn't the only one, Bruce going all weird on him and Alfred, Dick showing up and trying not to fall apart like the rest of them. 

As it is, Jason's a mess of scar tissue now. Ugly and knotted and just really fucking horrible to look at, and it's a small mercy that his clothes hide them for the most part.

Bruce has offered to pay for surgeries to reduce the scarring, but Jason.

It's really kind of messed up, but he wants to keep them. Reminder of Jason's major fuck up, the thing that almost got him, Bruce killed. (Got – got Jason's mom killed.)

So, yeah.

He's keeping the scars even though he knows it's messed up.

Dick just looks sad about it, and Bruce. God, Bruce is so damn hard to read sometimes, even now. Alfred is even worse, so much the proper British butler.

They let him have it, this stupid, fucked up thing, and he's grateful for it.

And Jason. 

He isn't Robin anymore, can't be.

Dick keeps borrowing him, spiriting him away to Bludhaven to help him out there, keep him company, whatever. 

Hints that it wouldn't be so terrible to have a sidekick, and hey, Nightwing needs a Flamebird, right?

But.

There's Bruce and Gotham and the empty hole at Bruce's side where Jason - _Robin_ \- should be.

And then Bruce will go to Bludhaven, steal Jason right back from Dick and haul him to Gotham, Dick following after and bitching the whole way.

None of them call him Robin, won't, because the name makes Jason twitch, which is all kinds of wrong and messed up.

He's wearing a new suit that's sort of a mix between Dick's latest Nightwing suit and the Robin suit. Little touches of Batman in there, with the cape, the gauntlets. Blue highlights a few shades darker than Dick's suit.

Dick calls him Blue Jay on the comms, and Bruce doesn't exactly call Dick on it, which. Wow, talk about potential security breaches, and oh, God, what - 

“For now,” Dick says, digs an elbow into Jason's side, Bruce watching them and carefully not smiling. “Until I can steal you from Bruce.”

(Right, like that's ever going to happen.)


End file.
